Is “Kyleigh’s Law” in New Jersey Unconstitutional?
MORRIS COUNTY, N.J.—(OiP)— Yesterday a New Jersey judge dismissed a lawsuit by a Rockaway lawyer who claimed “Kyleigh’s Law“, signed by Gov. Corzine in April 2009, is unconstitutional. “Kyleigh’s Law,” requires teen drivers with learner’s permits or provisional licenses to display orange decals on their license plates.
NJ Teens Against “Kyleigh’s Law” Teen Driving Restrictions on Facebook currently has 8,180 members. Just this weekend, the wind got knocked out of the activist group when a New Jersey judge upheld the law that is causing quite a stir throughout the Greater Area.
In Morrison County Superior Court on March 5th, Attorney Gregg Trautmann argued that the law is unconstitutional because the orange decals are a “Scarlet Letter” of age discrimination against teen drivers and would become malicious targets of the Police and sexual predators who would take advantage of the new implemented system on May 1st.
“Operating a motor vehicle is not a right, it’s a privilege subject to state regulations. Kyleigh’s Law does not violate the constitutions of the United States or New Jersey,” Judge Robert Brennan said in response to the lawsuit according to The Star-Ledger.
Despite the lawsuit being dismissed by the judge, the Facebook group remains optimistic in their statements:
Yes…the law was passed. No…this fight isn’t over. In fact, we’re closer to having this law repealed than we were having it not get signed.
A recently launched website has also reached the attention of thousands of concerned citizens, aptly named StopKyleighsLaw.org. According to their mission statement, the idea is that it’s a “dangerous precedent” and “should be repealed”.
“The most controversial of these new policies is the orange hang tag / sticker requirement, which announces to everyone that a young and inexperienced driver is at the wheel of a specific vehicle,” the organization writes about the new teen driving law.
On the other side of things, there are some who believe Kyleigh’s Law should be passed.
“Kyleigh’s Law should be passed and learn to teach teenagers this day and age, that once you have any type of driving permit/license, it doesn’t mean you can do what you want and feel like you will always get away with it. Too many people, teens especially, die each year due to the stupidity of drivers. At least 4,300 teens ages 16-19 die each year in vehicular accidents. This number is way too high, and teens need to be aware of it. PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD!!!” writes a Facebook Group ‘Kyleigh’s Law Should Be Passed’.
No other hazard is responsible to claiming as many teenage lives, not even teen homicide or suicides according to NHTSA.
Another statistic from the NHTSA claims that not only are the lives claimed an issue, but so are the injuries, with an estimated 300,000 teens injured in car crashes annually.
Is Kyleigh’s Law unconstitutional because it discriminates against teen drivers, and reveals all teens on the road to Law Enforcement and citizens alike?
-Or-
Is teen driving truly a deadly epidemic that led way to ‘Kyleigh’s Law’ that adheres to state laws & the constitution, legally enforcing Teen Driving as a privledge, not a right?
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Short URL: http://www.onlyinphiladelphia.com/?p=4533
Posted by Nate Graham
on Mar 7 2010. Filed under Featured, News.
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In my opinion Kyleigh’s Law is unconstitutional for reasons but also just the safety of our teens worries me. The first is the orange decals they will be like a big sign saying to police and all other people “Hi, I am only 16 or 17!!!”, my younger sister is in that age range and I do not want her targeted by anyone every time she gets in the car starting in May. This threatens a teens right to be secure in their persons or belongings based on the 4th amendment. My other big problem with the law is the fact that you can not plea bargain any violation which is a violation of the 5th amendment. And finally the idea that if a teen messes up once, speeding or not fully stopping at a stop sign they should loose their license for at least 5 months is excessive. This violates the 8th amendment which state “excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed…” I believe these are real constitutional issues that whether driving is a privilege or a right, should factor into a laws legality.
When I got my license I had to deal with the “Cinderella” curfew and it honestly was not that bad, if the law that is currently in place was strictly enforce NJ would not have had to deal with this. What people forget is that Kyleigh was in a car with 3 other people when the 17-yr old driver should have only have 1 or 2 (since 1 was his brother). I mean no disrespect to her memory but everyone should know the real facts and not just act as though it was because the driver was 17. Please if you want to know some facts look up the accident and read what Gregg Trautmann has to say.
This Law is unconsitutional, Teen drivers are just the same as anyother driver on the road. This is a total discrimation towards 17 year olds. Decals are going to just be a Huge advistiment that therea a younger driver in the car, which lores in predators, and lead to even harrassment on the road. Teen drivers already have restrictions on provisional liscenses, There is no need to change the curfew to 11. Maybe since This law is coming to affect Maybe this state should start making decals mandatory for sex predators, drunk drivers, and for the eldery. Teens are discrimated when it comes to drivng when really there are only a select few of teens that cant follow the rules and dont want to be responsble but there are many young adults, adults and eldery people who don’t follow rules and arent responsible. This Law needs to be repealed, and they should do more to prepare teens with premits for driving in stead of restricting teens that all ready have there liscences.
This law is completly wrong. it targets teens just because of their age. also, teens who have been driving are used to the current laws we already have. I know many teens who are better drivers than some adults, one bad driver and one crazy mom has to ruin it for everyone elese. The sticker labels teens and cops will pull them over just so they can make their end of the month quota. Furthermore, the tags make it a lable for petafiles to come and get these teens, are we just going to wait for the first rape to happen to repeal this law or are we going to take early action and repeal it now!. I feel this is very unconsitutional and discriminates people just because they are younger. Lastly, I have to say many busunessess will loose maney because many 20-21 yr. olds go out to clubs, parties etc. and this places will loose many because teens cant be out late anymore. I feel that this law is completlyl wrong is just another wrong way for the state to make some quick money, praying on the people who can do the least about it. It is completly unfair and need to be repealed.
This law is making young people a target for anyone who would prey on them. They don’t even have to go looking for them. All they need to do is sit at the mall and watch them go in and out. Then either take them or follow them home.
How about the 11pm part of this law. We can send our young adults over seas to die in combat but they can’t come home and drive to a movie if it gets out after 11pm? Ludicrous!. My children range in age from 17 – 36 and I have seen some of their friends die in auto accidents. Not even one would have been saved because of a ridiculous law like this.
Corzine is a rotten bureaucrat and a law like this proves it. I hope on May 1, the people of NJ flat out refuse to obey the law. What will the cops do, arrest and fine everyone?
The interesting thing is John Corzine tried to pass this exact same law nearly two years ago, but was met with a lot of opposition, and it went back under the rug. But suddenly it resurfaced, they slapped somebody’s name on it, and suddenly it is a pressing issue that needs to be addressed. This kind of self-centered wanting re-election feel-good stuff makes me sick.
how is putting a sticker on my plates and telling me to go home at 11 going to stop me from getting killed in an accident?
The courts in NJ have been for years in the pockets of the politicians so even though they say it is constitutional doesn’t mean that it really is. I will not have my child put the decal on her car. This is a flag for every pedophile to bump the car and cause it to pull over. It is also a flag for the police to harass the new drivers.
Kyleigh would not have been saved by anything in this law. She died with only one other person in the car, the driver, who was speeding! The law made Kyleigh’s mom feel like she did something just as it did with every politician who signed on to it. Law makers are just looking for ways to make them look good, not actually solve problems.
Wow…this law is terrible. Just because they put Kyleigh’s name on the law everybody seems to be supporting it. Red stickers don’t save lives, seatbelts do. And if we should have to put decals on our license plates, so should senior citizens who can’t drive for anything, so should child predators (as a part of their parol, and for the rest of their driving years) You see how obnoxious and absurd this law can continue onto. It’s not fair that you have to signal us out, just because we have lives, unlike the people who passed this dumb law, doesn’t mean you have the right to take that away from us. Seriously, do you think Kyleigh would be happy about this if she were still with us?